-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Wang Yue , the two-year-old girl who was left for dead on a narrow street in southern China after a hit-and-run accident , has died .

The toddler , nicknamed Yueyue , had been cared for in a hospital in Guangdong province since she was injured a week ago .

She succumbed to severe injuries Friday morning .

Two hit-and-run drivers ran over Yueyue , one after another , after she wandered into the alley outside her father 's hardware store . Both fled the scene but are now under arrest .

But there was one thing more shocking than the double hit-and-run : the seeming apathy by pedestrians , cyclists and drivers -- 18 of them -- who did not stop to help .

Yueyue laid motionless in the street for 10 minutes until Chen Xianmei , a 58-year-old woman who collects trash for a living , passed by . She moved her to safety and called for help .

A security camera captured the incident on tape . After the video was posted online , Yueyue 's plight prompted sympathy , outrage and debate in and outside China . How could 18 people pass by the critically injured child and do nothing ? The incident has also prompted widespread soul-searching in China about the state of the nation 's morality and civic-consciousness .

Why is it so difficult for Chinese nowadays to be a Good Samaritan ? There are many possible explanations and many possible culprits .

Some blame it on the lack of laws and regulations . Others argue it 's caused by the failure of China 's education system to inculcate respect for human life and dignity .

Still others blame it on what some call `` jingshen kongxu '' , or spiritual vacuum . As the country 's 1.3 billion people compete to make money and climb the economic and social ladder , experts say , many people find themselves spiritually adrift .

Reynard Hing , an astute China-watcher , cautions against making sweeping conclusions . `` It 's funny how many people read into this , to the point that anti-Chinese sentiment arises , '' he wrote me . `` This situation is not unique to China . ''

He cites the case of Kitty Genovese . In 1964 , the woman in Queens , N.Y. was chased and stabbed to death by an assailant over the course of half an hour while 38 of her neighbors watched from their windows and did nothing to help .

Psychologists , Hing tells me , have dubbed this phenomenon the ` bystander problem ' -- the one factor that would predict Good Samaritan behavior was how many witnesses there were to a tragic event : The more bystanders , the less likely someone will step up to help .

I asked Xia Xueluan , a socio-psychology professor at Peking University , about the seeming callousness of the 18 passersby . One factor is the district where it occurred , which has a concentration of hardware stores like the one Yueyue 's father owns . '' -LRB- They -RRB- are owners of hardware stores originally from different parts of China who hardly know each other . Together they comprise a ` strangers ' society ' , instead of one made up of real friends and acquaintances , or the `` acquaintances ' society ' . ''

Xia said the two sub-groups are fundamentally different . `` In an ` acquaintances ' society ' , '' he explained , `` their relationship is of intimacy , trust and interdependence . In the ` strangers ' society ' it is characterized by estrangement , distrust , and independence . In such a society , it is not surprising to see incidents like this . ''

James Feinerman , a law professor at Georgetown University likewise cites the changes brought about by rapid urbanization . `` In big cities , where many people have moved in from outside , where there are thousands of newcomers from the provinces , there 's a feeling that you are better off just leaving people you do n't know alone , '' he said in a CNN interview .

Other observers blame the incident on a breakdown in public trust . A joint survey by three universities in Beijing revealed that the root cause of people 's reluctance to help others in need is a lack of trust among residents . Only about 8 % surveyed said they still strongly trust other people .

Should an elderly person in need be helped ? Over 60 % of the respondents said `` yes '' , but more than 84 % also believed it is too risky ; recently in China , there have been several cases of individuals who faked injuries only to sue those who come to their aid .

In 2006 , an old woman in the eastern city of Nanjing was injured after rough jostling at a bus stop . Peng Yu , a young man and fellow passenger , offered help and even took her to the hospital . Later , however , the old woman and her family sued him in court , which eventually ruled that Peng Yu should pay 40 % of the medical costs .

Similar cases have happened in recent years .

`` There must be something wrong when it is considered risky to be a Good Samaritan , '' China Daily wrote in an editorial this week . `` Apathy and distrust are the last things a harmonious society needs . It is imperative that we find a way to protect Good Samaritans from being wronged . ''

Peking University 's Xia Xueluan calls this the `` interpersonal trust crisis '' . He explains : `` This kind of crisis is highly contagious and could deteriorate due to lack of legal support . As a netizen puts it , it 's not that the good people can no longer be found in our society . It 's that nobody can afford to do good deeds -- the price can be too high . ''

Days after Yueyue 's tragic accident , millions of China 's micro-bloggers are still pouring out their anger and frustration .

`` After Peng Yu 's case , if you were the first to find Yueyue after the accident , would you rescue her ? '' Netizen Yi Jingge wrote .

That is a question many in China are now asking themselves .

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A 2-year-old toddler in China died after being hit by two separate cars

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Video shows neither driver stopped to help , nor did 18 passersby

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Incident has caused an uproar around China , as well as soul-searching

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`` There must be something wrong when it is considered risky to be a Good Samaritan ''